China’s online market grows by 40%
Third place is NetEase, the company with the license to operate World of Warcraft in China, with a market share of 12,7%. World of Warcraft once again turns out to be one of the biggest players in the gaming market.
Industry regulators believe the Chinese market will continue to grow with numbers between 30 and 50 per cent in 2009 compared to 2009. Total market price would then be around 4 billion dollars.
China’s government provides the last hurdle towards really making the Chinese online market count; the General Administration of Press and Publication plans to tighten regulations, making government approval and license a requirement towards releasing a game. The report that foreign individuals and companies are not allowed to invest in China-based online game operations will only limit the growth.
China does have a positive attitude towards competitive gaming. The World Cyber Games global final will be in China for 2009, and the Electronic Sports League has been an organiser of major events for some time now. Lets hope they will not try to limit that growth!